As the shards of the Lord sliced his hands and the lifeblood dripped from his palms, Robert began to see he’d spent too much time building things instead of inventing people into a true and everlasting faith; the time of his reckoning had arrived.

The complete repudiation of his mission on earth was complete, and marked a vapid failure, and now, only the ground, and his impending ashes, would salve him from the eternal realization that he’d merely led a false and fanciful life.

Very good! Have you read the poetry of John of the Cross? He says something very much akin to this when he describes the dark night of the senses. There’s more: the dark night of the soul is even more penetrating, but, from what I’ve heard and read, worth every minute. As you can guess, the “dnsenses” I’ve been through a few times, but the “dnsoul” is still to come if God will be good enough to grant it and walk through it with me.